Schwalfenberg · Scientifica 2017 · narrative review · n=?

The Importance of Magnesium in Clinical Healthcare.

Cited 277 times in the scientific literature.

Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data

Narrative literature review without systematic review or meta-analytic methodology.

PubMed 29093983 · doi:10.1155/2017/4179326 · record verified 2026-08-29

What was done

A traditional integrated review was conducted to examine the medical and scientific literature on magnesium deficiency, its biochemical role as a cofactor in over 300 enzymatic reactions, and the evidence for magnesium repletion across various medical conditions.

What was found

The abstract reports that nearly two-thirds of the Western population fails to achieve the recommended daily allowance for magnesium. It reports that evidence supports magnesium use in migraine headache, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, asthma, premenstrual syndrome, preeclampsia, cardiac arrhythmias, and potentially depression, renal calculi, and cataracts. No specific quantitative outcome numbers, effect sizes, or study counts are provided in the abstract.

Why it matters

The review provides a broad overview of clinical scenarios where optimizing magnesium status via diet or supplementation may be beneficial.

Limits

As a narrative review, it lacks a systematic search protocol, risk of bias assessment, or quantitative meta-analysis. The abstract provides no specific patient numbers, intervention dosages, formulations, or statistical estimates.

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